I hope it's OK to post this. I am not sure about the fit of this dress. For me, it is gaping a bit at the neckline. This isn't a style that I have worn before, and I haven't made enough clothes to be sure of making fitting changes, so I would welcome opinions, the review is here. I lengthened the bodice by an inch, having read the previous reviews. I also just turned over the neckline and stitched it down using a twin needle. I wanted to put on the collar, but couldn't figure out how to do it, so I left it. I'm sorry the pictures are blurry, it was the best I could do at the time!

Why did you decide to turn over the neckline and stitch it instead of using the facing? If you wanted the collar, the facing is necessary.

I have found with wrap dresses, that the facing, with interfacing, is part of what gives body to that neckline edge and keeps it from gaping. My recommendation would be if you sew it again, use the facing...it does not look like a fit issue to me.

Thanks for the reply Michelle. I turned over the neckline because a good few people had said they had problems with the facing flopping out (which has been my experience in the past) and used this method of finishing the neckline as a solution. Yeah, I think it just isn't possible to attach the collar if the neckline is finished this way, but I was wondering if anyone had managed it?

If you don't want the facing to roll out, understitch it. Then stitch in the ditch at the shoulder seams, and make sure it is tacked down at the waist. There is no clean way to attach the collar without it. It will be less likely to roll out if you interface it as instructed. You can also widen the facing if you have concern.

The facing is added for more reason than to provide a finished edge to the front of the dress. Having the facing will also prevent the front of the dress from gaping and sagging, because it is the facing that gives the knit fabric the body necessary. The facing provides a more substantial attachment for the waist ties. Without the facing, you must tack on the waist ties, rather than inserting them into the seam, which means that area of the dress which will have a lot of stress placed on it will not have support.

I have this exact problem in RTW wrap dresses. in my case, the gaping occurs because, at 5'3", the length of the bodice is too long from the shoulder to the bottom of the sleeve seam (aka armpit-I'm trying to be more ladylike here)for my body.

In addition to Michelle's suggestion to keep the facings, I'd suggest pinning the shoulder seam deeper to see if that will place the neckline in a better spot where it conforms to your contours.

As for facings and wrap dresses - I like them. Otherwise you need a firm binding or some elastic sandwiched in the seam.

In my experience, skipping stabilizing the wrap seam can ONLY occur in two situations:
-fabric with exemplary recovery, especially rare in drapey knits
-where the wearer has a free spirited attitude to public exposure

I wouldn't use a facing either, unless I had an underlining to slip-stitch it to.

Instead, I had great luck with carefully using an iron and some 1/4" Stitch-Witchery to turn under the front, and some wooly nylon with a straight stitch as a top stitch. Gaping was not a problem unless I was bending over holding two 40-lb preschoolers upside down. ;)

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